Heaven Can Wait
by CrazyWriters
Summary: With the aftermath of the explosion, will everything be okay or turned completely upside down? Third story to The New Jersey Connection & Viva Las Vegas. R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**Heaven Can Wait**

_**Sequel to: The New Jersey Connection & Viva Las Vegas**_

_**Summary: With the aftermath of the explosion, will everything be okay or turned completely upside down? Third story to The New Jersey Connection & Viva Las Vegas. R&R!**_

_**Pairing(s): Jim/Catherine, Nick/Andrea & Peter/Lucy**_

_**Feedback: Please. It's always welcomed and much appreciated.**_

_**Author's Note: It is recommended that you read The New Jersey Connection and Viva Las Vegas before this one. Otherwise, you'll be totally lost. Other than that, enjoy ;)**_

**Chapter 1**

Peter watched the building explode. He didn't know for sure if anyone was still inside, but if there had been, than chances were they weren't getting out alive.

Peter looked down at Lucy as he heard the sirens. "Come on, honey. Let's get you to the hospital. Andrea can fix you right up." he said as he picked her up and made his way through the field.

* * *

Paulie was on the ground coughing from all the smoke that had surrounded him, when he jumped up and made a beeline for the building.

Tony, who had been in the car, jumped out and ran after Paulie. He grabbed him, just as they reached the door. "Paulie, we gotta get the fuck out of here." Tony said, listening to the sirens getting closer.

"Tony, Nicole's in there. We gotta get her out."

"Paulie, if she's in there..."

"No, T. don't fucking say it."

Tears welled up in Tony's eyes as he thought about never seeing Nicole again. "I don't wanna fucking believe it either, Paulie, but we can't stick around here with the cops on the way." Paulie looked back at the building and hesitated. "Paulie, let's go back to the hotel and when everything calms down, we'll come back and look for her. That's if she's still..."

"But T. what if she is and we left her here? I couldn't live with that."

"Paulie, we got no choice. Now, come on."

Tony and Paulie jumped in the car, peeled out of the parking lot and took off down the street as the fire engines, police cars and paramedics rounded the corner.

* * *

Peter and Lucy arrived at the hospital. He helped her into the Emergency department. "She's been shot, help her." Peter yelled at the LPN that was at the front counter.

She yelled at the orderly to get a stretcher and another one to grab a doctor. The doctor that showed up was Andrea. She looked at Peter, "Should I even ask what happened?" She asked as she started her assessment of the bullet wound.

"Just take care of her," Peter stated.

Andrea nodded, and took Lucy down to the surgical ward to remove the bullet and surgically repair any damage.

Peter sat in the waiting room and wondered if the Soprano crew was really gone. Something inside him said that he wouldn't be that lucky that they really were gone for good.

He sat there with his head in his hands and sighed. Was it to good to be true? Was it all really over? The same voice inside his head said it wasn't. And if it wasn't than he would have to go even farther to make sure it was. This time Lucy got hurt, and he was not going to allow that to happen again. He was going to make sure they were gone and if they weren't, than he would have to make sure the next time they were.

What was he going to do now? At least here, he could calm down and think. Just than someone walked up to him. It was Nick. Peter looked up at him, "What the hell happened, Peter? Why did Lucy get shot?"

Peter sighed, "It's a long story, Nick."

"Well you better start explaining it. She's my little sister!"

Peter took a deep breath, "Nicole shot her, after she kidnapped Tony." he said bluntly.

Nick's eyebrows shot up, he stalled. "What?"

"Nicole shot her, after she kidnapped Tony." Peter repeated.

Nick shook his head. "I can't believe it. Lucy kidnapped Tony? Why? How?" he asked and sat down beside Peter.

"She told me revenge. For what Tony did to her five years ago."

"You mean making her believe you were dead?"

Peter nodded. "Yeah. That and she blamed him for her losing our baby."

"Baby?" Nick asked confused. "She was pregnant?"

Peter looked over at Nick. "She never told you about that, did she?"

Nick shook his head. "No, she didn't."

"You know, if Tony hadn't of fucked things up five years ago, Lucy and I could have been married with a family and she wouldn't be in surgery right now." Peter said angrily, stood up and started pacing. He looked back toward the OR doors. "What the hell is taking so long?"

Nick looked up at a worried Peter and had to admit, no matter how difficult, that Peter really did care for Lucy. Nick stood up and placed a hand on Peter's shoulder. "She's in good hands, Peter. Andrea won't let anything happen to her."

Peter sighed, nodded and swallowed the lump in his throat. "I hope so, Nick. I hope so. I can't lose her. Not again."

* * *

Paulie sat on the bed in the hotel room. Tony had gone to take a shower. Paulie was in a state of shock. He could not believe that she was gone, blown up, by Peter. Tears formed in his eyes.

Nicole was dead. The words sounded so final, so cold. Somehow, Paulie just couldn't bring himself to believe it. But he knew eventually, he would have to come to accept it. But how could he? No, this couldn't be happening.

How was he going to go on without her? He was absolutely devastated. Sometimes he thought it would be simpler not to get attached to anyone, then losing someone would have little impact of his life. But he knew that wasn't possible. He needed human contact, to feel connected to another person.

He and Nicole had, had a strong connection. A connection that he never, ever felt with another human being before. But being attached so deeply to her was the reason he was hurting so badly now. If truth be told, he depended on her because she mattered to him. She occupied a special place in his heart. She was a part of him and can never be replaced.

Losing Nicole was like a piece of himself being torn away. The wound was deep and gaping and he wondered if he would ever be able to repair it.

Would this deep, aching feeling that he had in his heart ever stop or would he be inflicted to live with the hurt forever? One thing Paulie did know was that ignoring it would not make it go away. In the long run it would only be worse and it would just hurt him even more.

The tears were now freely falling down Paulie's face and now the guilt was seeping into his mind. He should have stopped her from going back into that building. Stopping Lucy and Peter from getting away was not worth Nicole losing her life.

Paulie laid down on the bed, that he and Nicole had shared only hours before, and released all his grief, heartache, anger and misery in long heart wrenching sobs.

* * *

Tony was leaning against the shower wall, letting the hot, steaming water beat down on his aching muscles. He couldn't believe she was gone. His cousin, his sister, his best friend. He would never see her again.

He turned the shower off and stepped out onto the bath mat. He dried himself off and put the white fluffy bathrobe on.

He stared at himself in the mirror. He was feeling helpless and somewhat vulnerable at that moment. A feeling that was starting to overwhelm him. He felt light headed and all of sudden he was having trouble controlling his breathing. Tony was having one of his panic attacks.

He grabbed his chest and spun around the bathroom until he fell forward and hit his head off the tub, knocking him unconscious.

* * *

Nick had just gotten Peter calmed down when Andrea walked into the waiting room. Peter jumped up from his chair and rushed over to her. "Is she okay?"

Andrea placed a hand on Peter's shoulder. "She'll be fine, Peter. The bullet missed the major arteries, so she's lucky."

"Can I see her?"

"She's out right now. Why don't you go get cleaned up, have something to eat and get some rest. She'll be awake tomorrow and you can see her then."

Peter was about to object when he felt Nick's hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Pete, I'll take you back to your hotel. You can grab your stuff and come stay with me and Andrea."

Andrea smiled at Nick's gesture and knew it wasn't easy for him. "That's a good idea. You go with Nick and I'll be home later." Peter didn't move. "I promise, she's okay. We'll take good care of her."

Peter nodded and started to walk out of the waiting room. Then he turned back and pulled his sister into a hug. "Thank you, Andy." he said with tears threatening to fall.

"No thanks necessary." she replied and hugged him back. Peter let her go and made his way out of the waiting room. Andrea looked at Nick and took his hand. "Thank you for suggesting that Peter stay with us. I know that wasn't easy."

Nick looked into Andrea's eyes. "You know I keep wanting to find an ulterior motive with him but I have to admit he genuinely loves Lucy."

"Yes, he does."

"Is she really going to be okay? I mean you weren't sugar coating anything for him, were you?"

"No, Nick. She's gonna be fine. I promise."

Nick nodded and kissed her. "Thank you. I'll get Peter settled and we'll see you later, okay?"

"Alright." she replied and watched Nick leave.

* * *

Paulie was still crying on the bed when he heard a loud bang come from the bathroom. He sat up, wiped the tears from his face and made his way over to the bathroom door. He listened for a minute and then knocked. "Tony? T. you okay?"

There was no answer. He turned the door knob and opened the door. He saw Tony laying unconscious on the floor with blood spilling out of the wound on his forehead.

"Jesus Christ, Ton!" Paulie yelled and knelt down beside him. He lightly slapped Tony's cheeks to try and roust him awake. "Come on, T., wake up."

Paulie stood up and grabbed a glass that was sitting by the bathroom sink. He filled it with cold water and then poured it on Tony's face. Tony moaned and started to come to.

He slowly blinked his eyes opened and looked up at Paulie standing over him. "Shit! What the fuck happened?" Tony asked as he brought himself up into a sitting position.

"I was about to ask you that, Ton." Paulie replied and for the first time noticed the blood on the bath tub. "By the looks of it, you whacked your skull off the tub."

Tony brought a hand to his forehead and felt the blood. "Fuck!"

"I think you need to get stitches."

Tony stood up and made his way out of the bathroom. "No fucking way. I'll just clean it the fuck up and put a bandage over it."

Paulie shook his head. "Ton, you're fucking split open."

"I'm not going to the fucking hospital, Paulie."

"Fine. Let me call downstairs. Every hotel is supposed to have an in-house Doc."

Tony sighed and poured himself a scotch and soda from the bar. "Yeah, okay. Call him."

Paulie called the front desk and the manager informed him that he'd send the doctor up right away.

* * *

Peter and Nick finally arrived at Nick and Andrea's house. "You can put your things in this room." Nick said pointing at the door way of the spare bedroom.

"Thanks." Peter answered and walked into the room.

"The bathroom is just down the hall and to the right." Nick said and headed to the living room. "I've got to go back to the lab and fill out some paperwork. If you need something just help yourself and I will be back in a couple of hours."

"Thanks." Peter said as Nick left.

This was Peter's chance to have a shower and head down to the warehouse that Lucy blew up to make sure that the Sopranos were actually taken care of for good. Something inside him said that it did not go to plan. That they were alive.

* * *

The doctor took a look at Tony's gash on his head, "Well I do recommend that you go to the hospital and get stitches, Mr. Soprano."

"Just put a bandage on it, Doc." Tony replied, he decided that he was not going to go to a hospital and have to explain to the whole medical team what happened. He wanted to go confirm that Nicole was dead, even if his gut was telling him that she was not.

The doctor shook his head. "I don't know what happened here, but I'll do what you want." He said pulling out butterfly stitches, gauze and medical tape to cover the wound.

"Thanks." Tony said once the doctor was finished.

The doctor smiled and put his medical supplies back in the bag and took off his plastic gloves. "The bill will be added to your hotel bill." He said than left.

Tony looked over at Paulie. "I think the police and fire department have left the warehouse." He said walking to the bathroom. "Once I'm dressed we're going to go take a look."

Paulie swallowed the lump in this throat. "Okay, T."

* * *

Peter was just getting out of the shower, and started to dry himself off. He was starting to get pissed off at his inside voice for telling him that he failed at getting rid of the Soprano crew. He understood that the chances were slim at them surviving the explosion, but they seemed to have gotten out of everything else that he has put them through.

He hoped that Lucy's plan for killing Nicole worked. At least then she would have gotten her revenge on Tony, in making him suffer as much as she did. He put her through hell, by telling her that Peter had been 'taken care of', and putting that much stress on her and making her miscarry.

His temper started to flair. He was now getting beyond mad at Tony Soprano. He wanted his own type of revenge on him. He wanted to torture Tony for what he did, that is if he survived the explosion. His voice inside his head told him that he did. Goddamn his gut instinct. It was not right. It has to be wrong.

Peter sighed and got dress. There was only one way to find out if his gut instinct was right. And that was to check out the warehouse. He hoped to God that it was wrong. He prayed that it was. For Lucy's sake.

* * *

Lucy was starting to wake up. Even though Andrea said that it would be a while before she did. Her leg was a throbbing pain, and it was shooting up to her waist and abdomen. The LPN came in to check on her and get her vital signs. "Good afternoon, Miss Stokes. I'm Kim and I'll be your nurse for this afternoon. I just need to get your vital signs."

"Yeah..." Lucy answered groggy.

The nurse started with the primary four. She started with temperature which was 37.8 oC and than went to, blood pressure, which was 100/60. That was a little low, due to the surgery that Lucy just had. The LPN finally went on to her pulse and respiration rate. Which she took both at the same time. Lucy's pulse rate was good, 68 bpm and her respiration rate was 13/min.

"Your all good, Miss Stokes. Is there anything else I can do for you?" Kim asked as she wrote down the vital signs on the chart.

"My leg is killing me."

Kim nodded and looked down at the chart. "I'll see what I can do for you."

Lucy just laid there in Semi Fowler position (bed is at a 45 degree angle) "Thanks..."

Kim came back with Morphine. Morphine has a high potential for addiction; tolerance and both physical and psychological dependence develop rapidly. Which Kim had to explain to Lucy. Lucy did not care she just wanted the pain to go away. Kim gave the drug to Lucy, and told her where the call bell was to the nursing station if she needed anything else. Before Kim was out the door of the private room Lucy was back asleep.

* * *

Peter walked into the living room and found a key sitting on the table next to the door. A small note was sitting there. 'House Key... Don't lose it.' Peter smiled and took the key. Nick must have just left it there for him to find.

He walked outside and locked the house up. Got in the car and took a little drive, he was not going right to the warehouse, instead he decided to grab something to eat on the way there. It was about a 20 minute drive to the warehouse and he was not going to do that on an empty stomach.

Before he arrived at Dunkin Donuts his mind wandered to Lucy who was laying in the hospital bed, bandaged up and whacked out on pain killers. He knew how much it meant to her to get Tony, and that was hopefully what happened. He shook his mind of it and ordered a coffee and a donut. It may have not been healthy but it would fill the spot.

* * *

Tony and Paulie headed out to the car. Paulie was driving and Tony looked out the window. And started to think about Nicole. He remembered the time when they were kids in elementary school. Nicole was one grade below Tony and was getting picked on by kids that were three grades ahead of her, because of how long her hair was. She told Tony that she was going to meet them after school in the basketball court. Tony told her that he would deal with it instead of her.

It had been no trouble for Tony to take care of the three bullies because once they saw him step foot on the basketball court they all back down immediately. No matter how much older or stronger you were, one thing you never did, or do for that matter, was mess with Anthony Soprano.

* * *

Peter had finished his coffee and donut and headed toward the warehouse. Twenty minutes later he pulled into the parking lot and got out of the car.

He looked around at the mess of the building. There was nothing left of the place. If there had been anyone inside when it exploded, then there was absolutely no way that anyone had made it out alive.

He walked toward the rumble and noticed in some places that it was still smoldering. He looked to his left and noticed the burnt out shell from the rental car that he and Lucy had transported Tony in.

That's when Peter clued in to where Lucy had placed the bomb. It had been inside the car. That was the reason she wanted to move it inside the warehouse.

He walked in further and started sifting through the ashes, looking for any trace of human remains.

It wasn't an easy job because he had forgotten to bring gloves and everything was still hot.

He managed to get through most of the stuff and didn't find anyone. Either they had made it out of the building or the paramedics and coroner had already removed the bodies. Peter prayed it was the latter. Then this whole mess would be over with once and for all.

He decided not to take and chance and walked out the back door to check the surrounding perimeter.

* * *

Paulie pulled the car into the parking lot and noticed another car parked close to the building. "Who's car is that?"

"No fucking clue." Tony replied and got out. "Right now, I don't give a shit. Let's just look around."

The walked over to the smoldering rumble that had once been a warehouse and prayed that Nicole was not buried under any of it.

"I'll start here, you go over there." Tony pointed.

Paulie walked over to the burnt out frame of the rental car and looked back at Tony. "T. I think the fucking bomb was in the car."

Tony looked up at Paulie. "Makes fucking sense. Now I know why Lucy wanted the fucking thing in here."

Paulie started sifting through the debris that was around the car but came up empty. "Ton, there's no body here. You think maybe that means..."

"Paulie, I hope so but maybe she was already removed. I mean the fucking place was swarming with cops."

Paulie walked back outside and looked around the parking lot. That's when he noticed another warehouse next door. "Hey, Tony, we should check out the building next door."

Tony walked up to Paulie and looked at the building. "What the fuck for?"

"Just to be sure, T."

Tony nodded and followed Paulie across the parking lot to the other building.

* * *

Peter checked every inch of the property surrounding the back of the building and came up empty.

He looked around and noticed the building next door. He shook his head. No that was crazy. But just be on the safe side he decided to check it out.

He made his way across the dirt and bushes and stopped in front of the back door. He listened for any movement and when he didn't hear anything he pulled open the back door.

* * *

Tony and Paulie made their way up to the front of the building. Paulie tried to peer through the window but there was too much mud and dirt caked on them and he couldn't see a thing.

"You see anything, Paulie?" Tony asked as he walked up to the door.

"Windows are too dirty, Tony. I can't see a fucking thing."

Paulie walked back over to Tony. Tony gripped the handle on the door and yanked it open.

As the two men stepped through the front door they looked across the warehouse and saw Peter coming in through the back.

**TBC...**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

"You've got to be shitting me!" Paulie almost yelled.

Peter noticed Paulie and Tony as the back door shut behind him. "Great. Just fucking great." he mumbled. At least now he knew that two of them were alive.

Tony was mad. "You fucking killed Nicole, you motherfucker." He said pointing a gun at Peter and fired.

Peter jumped to the side and the bullet went whizzing passed him. "You fucker!"

Paulie pulled his gun out and starting firing at Peter himself. "You're dead this time, you lousy cocksucker!"

Peter dove behind some crates, allowing him enough time to pull his gun out of his shoulder holster and start firing back.

Tony and Paulie both dove for cover in opposite directions, taking cover behind crates. They both started firing back hoping that one of their bullets would make contact with Peter.

Peter fired off another few shots and then slumped down behind the crate where he was taking cover. He checked his cartridge. "Great. Only four shots left." he said to himself.

Tony looked up from his hiding spot and saw the top of Peter's head. He let off a shot.

Peter heard the shot and slumped down to the ground and the bullet just barely missed his head.

Paulie saw where Peter was and tired to make his way towards him and tried to keep cover at the same time. He wanted Peter for himself.

Tony saw what Paulie was doing and shook his head. What an idiot. Tony decided that his best bet was to stay right were he was.

Peter peeked out from behind the crate and noticed Paulie was on the move. He knew he only had four shots left so he had to use them wisely. Once he figured he had a good shot, he took it.

Paulie heard the gunshot and dove down behind a nearby crate. "Fucking cocksucker! That one nearly clipped me." Paulie muttered to himself.

As Peter was ducking back down behind the crate another bullet whizzed by his head. "Fuck! Two against one! I'm fucked!"

Tony looked over the crate he was hiding behind and saw Paulie signal to him out of the corner of his eye. Tony understood what Paulie wanted to do and a second later they bombarded Peter with a barrage of bullet fire.

Peter was slumped down behind the crate praying for the gunfire to stop. He only had three shots left and he didn't know what to do. No matter what he fired at these guys, nothing connected. But thank God nothing from their side connected with him either.

Paulie and Tony stopped their gunfire and waited for movement from Peter. When they didn't hear anything, they both stood up from their hiding spots.

At that moment, Peter popped up and fired a shot at each of them. The shot at Paulie missed but the shot at Tony had grazed his left arm. "Shit!" Tony yelled.

Peter slumped back down and knew he had hit Tony. The only thing he had to figure out was how to get the hell out of there in one piece. Peter knew if Tony wasn't badly hurt that he didn't stand much of a chance with only one bullet left in his gun.

Peter shook his head, he had to figure out something. Anything. Just than he hurt a soft groan. He frowned. What the hell? He thought to himself and started to look around. "Shit, your my ticket out of here." He said.

Tony held his arm, he knew it was only superficial and that all he had to to was to just cover it up. Now he wanted Peter.

"Peter, you don't stand a fucking chance! Throw your fucking gun away and come out." Tony yelled.

"All right, but don't shoot." Peter yelled back smirking.

"Yeah, right," Paulie muttered to himself. Both him and Tony stood up when they heard Peter standing up. "Fuck!"

"You fucker!" Tony yelled at what he saw.

**/Newark, New Jersey/**

Christopher was finally discharged from the hospital and arrived at the Bing. He walked in the back and the first thing he noticed is just how depressing the atmosphere seemed. Something was wrong. He looked at the door just as Sil walked in. "Hey, how's the shoulder?"

"Sore," Christopher answered as he sat down on the couch. "Where the fuck is everyone?"

"Vegas. T. Nic, went after Paulie, Peter kidnapped him."

"Holy fuck!" Christopher said raising his eyebrows. "He, okay?"

"Yeah they got him back, I just got word from T., though."

"What?"

"Nicole's dead. She apparently went back after Peter and Lucy after her and Paulie got Ton, away from them."

Christopher stalled. "Nic's dead?"

Sil sighed, it was tough on him. He remembered when Tony made her a made-woman. "Yeah..."

"Sil, we got a little problem outside. One of the girls is getting harassed." A woman said sticking her head inside.

"Fuck," Sil said and headed towards her and out of the back room.

Christopher watched him leave and headed to the counter to make himself a drink. He could not believe it, she was dead. Killed, by Peter. He shook his head, no, it had to be a mistake.

Even when her and him would fight, they still made up. They were not best of friends, but they were close. His mind went back to when they tried to take care of Catherine, at the Pine Barrens, and she lost her shoe. They used to laugh about that after it happened. He still could not believe at how it happened, but it happened. Than it went to how him and Paulie were at the hotel watching to see the group from Las Vegas leave, and she just jumped in the back.

He had to admit that Tony did make the right decision in letting her in the crew than to a made-woman. She was one hell of a woman, and one strong one. That is why he could not wrap his head around that she was dead. It hurt to hear that, tears formed in his eyes and he tired to hide them.

They went through a lot together, and he could not imagine doing a job for Tony with out her, since they did most of them together. All though he had to admit that she sometimes would try and be too independent. Almost so, too much for her own damn good. He remembered the time when she decided to break it off with Ralphie, because of what he kept doing to her, and she never came to the crew about it. Which at the time pissed him off, because she was his blood. And, Ralphie weirded him out.

With knowing that it was Peter and Lucy that killed her, he wanted to go to Vegas and finish those two off for himself. He knew though that he would have to beat Tony and especially Paulie to it.

It surprised him at first when her and Paulie started going out, but he had to admit, she did make a good decision in choosing him. Even though Paulie and him never really got along.

**/Las Vegas, Nevada/**

Nick and Jim were sitting down in a coffee shop, having a cup of coffee. "Jim, Peter told me that Lucy kidnapped Tony Soprano to get back at him. And that's how she got shot in the leg."

"I had a feeling, I think that the woman... Nicole Soprano? Is the one that killed Grigger."

Nick shook his head. "I don't really care about Grigger, right now, Jim. I am more concerned about, Lucy. One of them shot her, and I want to make sure they pay for it."

"Nicky, don't go jumping off the deep end. If we," Jim could not believe that he was about to say this, it almost went against every grain in his body. "If we report this, than your sister, and my brother will go to jail."

"That's why I want to deal with this on my own."

"No, we have to play this smart."

"Jim, I want them."

"And we will." Jim answered. He could not believe that he was agreeing to this. But he had to protect his family, at all costs.

* * *

Jim walked in to his house, hoping that Catherine was in a little better mood. He understood why she was not in a good mood, all because of Peter, Lucy, and Sam's death. She wanted it all just to end, for all of the problems to go away. And Jim wished that he could give that to her. Than an idea hit him. It would sure help her mood.

"Honey, I'm home." He said with a smiled.

"Up here." Catherine's voice rang out from the living room.

Jim walked up the stairs to find that his son was taking a nap in his playpen. Catherine was reading a book and drinking coffee. A time for some relaxation, or so she thought.

"Looks like he hasn't been down too long." Jim said sitting down beside her.

"He hasn't." She smiled.

Jim smiled back. "I was thinking."

"The wheels on the bus, again?" She smirked.

Jim laughed. "We should elope."

"What? Really? Now?"

"Elope. Yes. Now." Jim answered.

"Jim, what about our family?"

"We'll tell them after. C'mon, Cath."

Catherine thought for a moment, than answered. "Okay. But what about the baby?"

"Tell Andrea you need to run out for a moment, and see if she could babysit."

"Jimmy..."

"You want me to call?"

"And what are you going to tell her?"

"That we have to run an errand and he's sleeping. She'll understand."

Catherine sighed. "Fine."

* * *

Paulie and Tony stood up and looked at Peter. They could not believe what their eyes were showing them. Was she alive? Was Peter playing a sick joke on them? Was it true? "Let her go." Tony ordered.

"Why?" Peter asked.

Paulie looked at Tony. "Is this prick for real?" Then turned his attention back to Peter. "Let her go, you fucking cocksucker!"

Peter looked at the body he was holding and then back at Tony and Paulie and smirked. "Okay. You got it." he said and pushed her away from him so hard that she bounced off a nearby crate and landed hard on the cement floor.

Paulie and Tony watched her land and started to run toward her when Peter took the opportunity to let off his last shot. It blew by Tony's head, nearly grazing him.

As Paulie and Tony were ducking for cover, Peter ran to the back door and made his escape.

They were behind the crates when they heard the back door shut. They looked at each other. "He's fucking gone, that motherfucker." Tony said and saw that Paulie had already taken off to get Peter. "Fuck!"

Peter was running through the back dirt lot when he heard footsteps running behind him. He looked back over his shoulder and saw Paulie hot on his trail. "Shit!"

Paulie, who still had his gun in his hand, started firing at Peter. "You're dead! You motherfucker!"

Peter fell to his knees as a bullet grazed his left leg. "Ahhh! Fuck!" he yelled but managed to get back on his feet.

Paulie was closing in on him when they crossed over into the adjacent lot. He fired another shot as Peter dove into the rubble.

"You motherfucker." Paulie yelled running up to him, finally he caught up to him and kicked Peter in the gut. "You're fucking dead!" He yelled and started kicking Peter.

"Ahhh! Fuck! Ahhh!"

Paulie pointed his gun at Peter's head and pulled the trigger. The gun was empty. "You're fucking lucky." He said kicking him again. " I never want to see your face anywhere near Newark, me, Nic or the rest of the crew. If I do I'll stick this," He yelled referring to this gun, "Up your ass and pull the trigger 'til the bullets come out your fucking eyes!"

Peter spat, "Fuck you!"

Paulie shook his head and hauled off and hit Peter with the butt of his gun in the forehead.

Peter slumped over as blood seeped out of the gash on his forehead.

Paulie spit on him and turned around to walk back out of the building. He never made it two steps when something hit him in the back and he went down. He groaned in pain and rolled over onto his back.

He looked up and saw Peter standing over him holding a two-by-four. "Lesson number one, Paulie: Never turn your back." Peter said. He dropped the two-by-four and kicked Paulie in the side.

Just than a shot rang out. "Get the fuck away from him, Peter." Nicole yelled. She looked like she went through hell sideways, than backwards. She was not standing very good, but she was beyond mad.

Peter looked at her. "Fuck you, bitch."

"I said get the fuck away from him." Nicole yelled, aiming the gun at Peter.

Paulie took this chance, grabbed the two-by-four and whacked Peter in the knee. Peter went down.

Paulie stood up and kicked Peter. "Fucker."

Tony came up behind Nicole. "Did you get him?"

Nicole looked back at Tony. "Paulie just knocked him on his ass." she replied smiling.

Tony helped Nicole make her way over to Paulie, who hit Peter with the two-by-four again. "You lousy cocksucker!"

Nicole started to feel dizzy, like she was going to pass out again. "Paulie..." Was all she got out when she collapsed into Tony's arms.

Paulie turned his attention to Nicole. Peter took this opportunity to take off running.

He stumbled a few times because his knee was killing him. As was every bone in his body. Eventually he made it to his car. He jumped in and peeled out of the parking lot.

Back inside the demolished building, Paulie and Tony were taking care of Nicole. "Let's get her to the hospital, T."

Tony looked at Nicole in his arms, thanking God that she was actually still alive, and then back to Paulie. "How are we gonna explain this?"

"Tony, it wasn't her fault. Or ours for that matter. She was just in the wrong place at the wrong time."

Tony nodded. "Okay, let's get her to the car."

* * *

Andrea let herself into the house. "Jim? Catherine?"

Jim came out of the kitchen and met his sister by the front door. "Hey, Andy, thanks for doing this."

"No problem, Jimmy." she replied and followed Jim back into the kitchen.

"I was just making up a bottle for Alex. In case he wakes up."

"Is he sleeping now?"

"Yeah, Cath just put him down. He shouldn't be any problem." Jim said as he finished up the bottle.

Just then Catherine walked into the kitchen. "Hey, Andrea. Thanks for babysitting. We really appreciate it." Catherine said and looked at Jim. "Jim, we really need to get going."

Jim wiped his hands on a dish towel. "Right." he said and grabbed his car keys off the hook on the wall. "Okay, you know where everything is. We won't be too long." He started to follow Catherine out through the garage when he stopped and smirked at his sister. "Oh and Andy?"

She looked at his curiously. "Yeah?"

"No guys over while were gone, okay?" he laughed.

Andrea picked up a dish towel and threw it at her older brother. "Just get out of here, Jimmy." she said and shook her head, smiling.

* * *

Peter drove for a few blocks and then pulled his car over to the side of the road. He shut the engine off and laid his head against the steering wheel. "Fuck! Fuck! Fuck!" he cursed himself.

In all honesty he should be dead right now. But thankfully someone was watching out for him and he made it out of there.

It wasn't every day that a person took on three members of the Soprano crew and lived to tell about it.

Peter wasn't exactly scared of the crew but when they out numbered you it was enough to make you shit your pants. Now he had to decide what to next.

He looked around at the empty streets, took a deep breath and started the engine again. He pulled away from the curb and drove off down the street.

* * *

Tony pulled the car up in front of the emergency room doors of Desert Palm hospital. Paulie got out of the car and then picked up a still unconscious Nicole. They made their way inside as Tony took off to the parking lot to park the car.

As Paulie made it through the door an orderly ran up to him. "What happened, sir?" the orderly asked as they brought her to a stretcher.

Paulie laid her down gently. "She was caught in an explosion."

Two nurses and the on-call ER doctor ran up to the stretcher. "Okay, let's get her checked out." the doctor ordered.

Paulie watched them disappear down the hall and was about to followed when a nurse stopped him. "You can't go in there, sir."

Paulie looked at the nurse and then back at the doors. "Yeah, okay." he replied. He wasn't about to cause an argument. He was just relieved that Nicole was alive.

"Sir, I need you to fill out some forms."

Paulie took the clipboard and a pen and walked down to the waiting room. A minute later Tony came in and walked over to Paulie. "How is she?" he asked, as he sat down.

"They're checking her out now." Paulie said and looked back down at the clipboard. "These fucking forms! It's nothing but bullshit!"

Tony took the clipboard from Paulie and placed in on the table in front of him. "Forget the forms. It's just their way of distracting you."

Paulie sighed. "I can't believe she survived that explosion, T."

Tony shook his head. "I can't either. Fucking Sil was right. She is fucking bionic." Tony smirked.

Paulie chuckled. "Yeah. I'm glad she's on our side."

* * *

Jim and Catherine walked into the Little White Wedding Chapel. Catherine looked around. "Please tell me we are not getting married by Elvis."

Jim chuckled. "I think you have to make a special request for that, honey."

Catherine breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank God. Eloping is one thing but I refuse to be married by a man that's impersonating someone that's been dead for over thirty years. I say let him rest in peace already."

Jim shook his head, amused at Catherine's way of thinking. "Are you sure you're okay with this, Cath? I mean, if you have your heart set on a big wedding, we can wait."

Catherine looked at Jim and placed a hand on his cheek. "Jim, even though I would prefer to say 'I do' in front of our family and friends, I want nothing more than to be your wife. Whether we have a big wedding or elope right now like we planned, it makes no difference. I just want to marry you." Catherine had never been so sure about a decision in her life.

Jim smiled and leaned in to kiss her when they heard someone clearing their throat. "Mr. Brass?"

Jim looked at the minister. "Yes?"

"Right this way, sir. We're ready to start."

Jim nodded and held his hand out to Catherine. "Last chance to back out, Catherine." he smiled and winked.

Catherine took his hand and returned the smile. "Not happening, Brass. I've waited too long for this moment. You're not getting away now."

He kissed her hand and they made their way up to the minister.

* * *

Peter was about to make his way back to Nick and Andrea's house, when he changed his course and headed for the hospital. He had to see Lucy.

Andrea assured him that she was going to be okay but he had to see her for himself. And to tell her that her plan hadn't worked. The Soprano crew was still very much alive.

He had to hand it to her, she was gutsy. Kidnapping Tony Soprano was not and easy feat and she pulled it off beautifully.

He pulled his car into the parking lot at the hospital and made his way inside. As he was walking toward the nurse's station to find out Lucy's room number, he walked by the waiting room.

He glanced inside and noticed Paulie and Tony sitting there. "Aww, for fuck sake." he mumbled and quickly walked off down the hall before they noticed him.

Peter made it to the nurse's station. "Can I help you?" the nurse asked.

"I need to know what room Lucy Stokes is in, please." Peter replied.

"One moment." The nurse checked her computer. "Second floor, room 213."

"Thank you." Peter said and walked off toward the elevator.

**TBC...**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Paulie and Tony looked up at the same time as the doctor walked into the waiting room. "How is Nicole?" Paulie asked, jumping up from his seat.

"She suffered a major concussion, which was caused by a fractured skull. Several broken ribs and they caused some damage and resulted in some internal bleeding." Paulie was about to speak when the doctor raised his hand to stop him. "We managed to stop the bleeding but she was very lucky. If she had have been without medical attention for much longer, there would have been nothing we could've done."

"But she's gonna be okay?" Tony asked.

"In time, yes. Right now she has to stay here so we can keep a close eye on her."

"Can we see her?" Paulie asked.

"In a little while. She's sedated right now and I don't want her having any visitors at the moment."

Paulie was about to argue with him when he felt Tony's hand on his shoulder. "Thank you, Doctor." Tony said.

The doctor nodded. "My pleasure, gentlemen." he replied and left.

"T. what the fuck?"

"Starting a fucking fight with him is not gonna get you in to see her any fucking quicker. Let's just be thankful that she's okay."

"You're right, Ton."

"Let's go back to the hotel, get cleaned up, maybe get something to eat and then we'll come back and see her." Tony said and patted Paulie on the back.

"Alright." Paulie replied and followed Tony out of the waiting room.

* * *

Peter made his way to Lucy's hospital room. He had a feeling that she was still sleeping, which he found out that he was right. He stood in the door way and looked at her. She had guts. He had to admit that. And that was something that made him smile. Something that he loved about her.

He wished that what she had done to the Soprano crew actually worked. However, if someone was looking out for him, maybe the same for Lucy. Even though Nicole made it to the hospital, maybe, the wounds were too much to fix. He could hope couldn't he?

"Peter...?" Lucy's soft voice asked. She was still beyond tired.

Peter walked over to her, "It's okay, babe. You're safe."

"What happened to you?" She asked, concerned.

Peter held her hand. "Don't worry, I'm fine."

"Did we get them?"

Peter was worried, about how she was going to take this. He knew that Tony and Paulie were alive. However, if Nicole did make it to the hospital good chances are that she is alive. "Paulie and Tony are alive."

"Nicole?"

Peter shook his head. "Good chance. I know that Paulie and Tony found her and she made it to the hospital."

Lucy was mad. "No, no. Damn it."

Peter, sighed. "Honey we'll get them. I promise."

"How long, Peter? How fucking long is it going to take. This is fucking bullshit. They should be gone!" Lucy's voice raised.

Peter looked at her, "Honey..."

"Your plan didn't fucking work! Mine didn't fucking work!" She yelled.

"Calm down..."

Lucy took a deep breath and was going to rant again when the nurse walked in, "I'm sorry but she needs her sleep. You can come back later." She said to Peter.

Peter sighed. Things were starting to get out of control. Especially with Lucy. She was blood thirsty for revenge against Tony and was going to do anything to get it.

"I'll be back later, try and lighten up. We'll make it work." Peter said and gave her a kiss. Than he walked out.

* * *

Paulie and Tony arrived at the hotel. Paulie took a deep breath and went and had a shower. He let the water beat on his sore muscles. He was relieved to know that Nicole was alive. He knew that he was not going to have to hide his feelings this time, that he was going to let her know how he really felt. That he depended on her. That she occupied a special place in his heat.

It still bugged him that she ran into that building and he did not stop her. He should have and than she would not be in the hospital, in that bad of a condition. He never thought that she would get hurt like this, with that bad of wounds. Than again, he never thought that all of them would never go through what Peter and Lucy were putting them through.

Paulie knew that he had to figure out a way to get revenge, for Nicole's sake.

Paulie turned the shower off and stepped out onto the bathmat. He dried himself off and put on the robe.

He took a deep breath and tried to relax. It was not working. He was pissed off that there were no more bullets in the gun, and that he could not finish off Peter.

Paulie walked out into the hotel room and heard Tony hang up the phone. "Who was that?" Paulie asked, digging through the duffel bag looking for some clean clothes.

"Silvio." Tony said heading to the bathroom. It was his turn to have a shower.

"Oh?"

"Was just letting him know that we found Nic, and that she is going to be alright. Christopher is out of the hospital now."

"The kid's okay?"

"Yeah."

"I'm gonna go and see Nicole, and than come back with some food."

"Yeah."

* * *

Catherine and Jim finished signing the paperwork, and two witnesses signed it as well. They were now married. Catherine was no longer Catherine Willows, she was Catherine Brass. She was a wife now.

They thanked the minister and made their way back home. Smiling. They were happier now than they ever were. They were finally married to each other, had two little ones and life was just starting for both of them.

"So, what about the honeymoon?" Catherine asked, "Where do you wanna go?"

"I was think about an Alaska cruise."

Catherine thought for a second, that did sound nice, "Yeah, that sounds great. How about, when?"

"Let's take a look on line when we get home, sweetie."

* * *

Paulie walked into Nicole's hospital room and sat down by her bed. She was sleeping and he didn't want to disturb her.

He leaned toward her bed. He took her hand, kissed it and then looked up into her beautiful face. "I'm glad you're okay, baby. I was terrified that I'd never see you again. But don't you worry, Peter's not getting away with hurting you. I guaran-fucking-tee it."

"Glad to know you're still looking out for me, Paulie." Nicole's weak voice sounded from the bed.

Paulie smiled. "Always. How are feeling, sweetheart?"

"Better, now that you're here."

"You just take it easy and get yourself better."

"Seems like I'm always having to do that." Nicole replied and then closed her eyes.

Paulie leaned forward and kissed her forehead. "It's okay, honey, you rest."

"Paulie?"

"Yeah."

"Where's T.?"

Just than Tony walked through the door, "Right here. How you feelin'?"

"Sore..."

He walked over to the bed and looked down at her. "Well, that's what you get for getting your fucking ass blown up for the fourth time."

Nicole looked up at Tony. "Thanks, T., I appreciate your sympathy."

"Anytime." Tony smirked and sat down in the chair next to the bed. He pulled out a brown bag. "Brought some food."

Nicole laughed. "Thanks. What is it?"

"Well, since all the good Italian food is back on the East coast, I settled for Chinese." Tony replied.

"Ton, I told I was bringing some food back." Paulie stated.

"I was fucking hungry, Paulie. I didn't know how long you were gonna fucking be and I wanted something now. Besides I wanted to see Nic myself."

Nicole was peaking into the bag. "You get any egg rolls?"

Tony looked at her like she just grew a second head. "What the fuck is Chinese food without egg rolls?"

Paulie chuckled. "Let me have some of that." he said and grabbed the bag.

"Take it easy, Paulie. There's plenty." Tony stated.

Nicole looked over at Tony. "Please tell me you got forks?"

"Uh..." he said looking in the bag.

"T., you can't fucking expect me to use chop sticks."

Tony smirked and reached into his inside jacket pocket. "Here." he said and placed the plastic utensils down on the table.

Nicole smiled. "You always do that. You'd think I'd know better by now."

"Yeah, you'd think." Tony repeated and dug into his food.

Nicole just shook her head and dug into her own food.

* * *

After Peter had gotten kicked out of Lucy's room, he decided to take a drive and clear his head. Now he was sitting on the hood of his car, outside of Las Vegas, in the middle of the desert.

The windows were opened in the car and he could hear the music drifting out into the night air. He had put in a CD before he had gotten out. _The River by Bruce Springsteen_. Peter was a Springsteen fanatic. He had every album and knew every song by heart.

He remembered back when he first met Lucy. Their third date was to a Bruce Springsteen concert in Asbury Park, New Jersey. It wasn't _his_ first Springsteen concert but Lucy had never been to one before and he convinced her that she was missing out never having seen 'The Boss' live.

He listened as the song changed and he heard the familiar drums, guitar and piano, signifying the beginning of _The Price You Pay_.

He had heard this song a million times before but now he laid down on the hood of his car and really listened to the words:

_You make up your mind, you choose the chance you take_

_You ride to where the highway ends and the desert breaks_

Peter stared up at the millions of bright stars shining above him. The highway hadn't exactly ended but here he was sitting in the middle of the desert. Alone.

_Out on an open road you ride until the day_

_You learn to sleep at night with the price you pay_

Peter really listened to the words. They seemed to fit his life to a T. But sometimes paying the price means learning a lesson that can eventually destroy your life. Or someone else's.

_Now with their hands held high, they reached out for the open skies_

_And in one last breath they built the roads they'd ride to their death_

Was this it for him? Was he gonna be taken down by the Soprano crew once and for all or would he manage once again to escape the clutches of death? Only time would tell and he knew he'd be seeing them again.

_Driving on through the night, unable to break away_

_From the restless pull of the price you pay_

Why couldn't he just break free of the crew once and for all? No matter how hard, fast or far he drove, he couldn't escape them. He had a sinking feeling they wouldn't stop until he was six feet under ground. But if that was the price that he had to pay to keep everyone else he loved safe, then it was something he was willing to do. Peter didn't want to die, not by a long shot. But if sacrificing himself to keep his family safe, that he would do.

_Chorus:_

_Oh, the price you pay, oh, the price you pay_

_Now you can't walk away from the price you pay_

Peter sat up again and stared across the desert. In the distance he heard a coyote howl. How easy it would be to just stay there forever and not worry about anything anymore. But Bruce was right, you can't walk away from the price you pay. No matter how hard you try, it'll always haunt you.

Peter knew the next verse coming up and sat there and wondered to himself if he was just caught up in a dream, well more like nightmare, where everything seemed to go wrong. No matter what he did, nothing ever seemed to go his way. Not dealing with the crew anyway. The only good thing that's come out of all this mess was his reconnecting with Lucy.

He wished she was sitting there with him right now. Hopefully she would be out of the hospital soon. Then he could bring her out to the desert, where they could lay on the hood, stare at the stars and listen to Springsteen together.

One thing he did know, was that he would stand and fight for everything that he had to pay for at the hands of the Sopranos.

_Now they come so far and they waited so long_

_Just to end up caught in a dream where everything goes wrong_

_Where the dark of night holds back the light of day_

_And you've gotta stand and fight for the price you pay_

Peter got back in the car. He listened to the rest of the song and the CD as he drove back into the city.

The desert had been so peaceful that the bright lights of the Vegas strip seemed to overwhelm him.

He decided to head back to Nick and Andrea's and try to catch some sleep. Since he had been kicked out of Lucy's room and wouldn't likely be permitted back in again tonight, there wasn't much else he could do.

* * *

Nick knocked on Jim and Catherine's front door and then entered. "Andrea? You still here?" he called out.

Andrea peaked over the railing from upstairs. "Up here, Nick."

He made his way up the stairs and met Andrea at the top. "I got your note and thought I'd stop by and see if you needed any help."

She smiled at him. "That's sweet, but I got everything pretty much handled. Just finished changing Alex's diaper and put him back to bed."

Nick looked in at the little guy sleeping in his crib. "Has Peter been here?" he asked.

"Peter? No, why?"

"I left him at the house but when I got home he wasn't there."

"Come to think of it he wasn't there when I got home from work either." Andrea replied, a hint of concern in her voice.

Nick turned around and looked into his wife's worried face. "Hey, I'm sure he just went to see Lucy or to grab a bite to eat. If he's not back by morning, then we start to worry."

Andrea nodded. "Yeah, you're right."

* * *

Peter pulled into the driveway and noticed that neither Nick or Andrea's cars were there.

He used the key that Nick had left for him and let himself into the house. He walked to living room and turned on a lamp that was sitting on an end table.

He glanced around the room and noticed pictures on the wall. He walked over. The first ones were of Andrea's daughters, Kayla and Hayley. He hadn't seen his nieces in well over a year and he missed them.

The next picture he saw was of a large group of people. He didn't recognize most of them except for a young Nick and Lucy. Clearly a family photo.

His eyes lingered on Lucy's face for a moment until he noticed another picture. This one was of Jim, Andrea, himself and their parents. It had been taken one summer down at the Jersey shore.

He missed those days. He and Jim were closer then. Sure they fought but then what brothers don't? He chuckled as he remembered the time he broke the bowl of oatmeal over Jim's head and then when Jim had thrown him through the screen door. Sibling rivalry at its finest. He just prayed that he could make things right with Jim again. They had been on the right path when he decided to take matters, regarding the Soprano crew, into his own hands and fucked everything up. Hopefully when this whole mess got straightened out once and for all they could all get back to how things were supposed to be.

Peter's gaze wandered away from the pictures and he made his way down the hall to the spare bedroom. He could feel himself starting to crash and knew the days events were catching up with him.

He made it to the bedroom, stripped out of his clothes and crawled beneath the covers. He was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow.

* * *

Tony and Paulie had left the hospital just after visiting hours had ended. They were just getting back to the hotel.

Paulie sat down on one of the beds while Tony poured himself a scotch and soda. "You want a drink, Paulie?"

"No thanks, T." Paulie replied. "You know, Ton, I think things may finally be starting to look up."

"Possibly. But we can't take that chance. Not with Peter, and now that fucking broad Lucy, still running loose out there."

"Yeah I know, Tony, but with Nicole being okay and everything, got me to thinking about things."

"Like what?" Tony asked curiously and took a sip of his drink.

Paulie looked away, not sure how Tony would take what he was about to say. But Paulie always knew, the best way to handle things with Tony was to just come out with it. "I'm thinking about asking her to marry me, T."

Tony stared at him for a second. "You fucking serious?"

"More serious than I've ever been about anything in my life. I love her, Tony. And almost losing her has made me realize how lucky I am to have her. So, I guess what I wanted to say was with you and her being so close and all, I wanted to ask for your blessing, T."

Tony smiled at Paulie. "You have it, Paulie." he said and stood up. Paulie stood up too and Tony hugged him and kissed him on both cheeks. "Welcome to the family."

"Little premature, don't you think?"

"No fucking way. Because I know she'll say yes. This makes me happy Paulie. You're better for her than Ralphie ever fucking was."

Paulie looked at Tony. "Regardless, T. I think Ralphie died trying to protect her."

"Yeah, he did that much for her anyway." Tony replied and pulled a cigar from a case that had been inside his bag. He lit up and smiled at Paulie again.

Paulie noticed the smile. "What?"

"Finally some good news for once."

Paulie chuckled. "Yeah, let's hope it lasts a while."

**TBC...**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

_**A/N: We did a little revising of chapter 4. We find it flows much smoother this way. R&R and let us know what you think!**_

Nicole tossed and turned, even though every time she did her body protested in extreme pain. She took a deep breath and concentrated on her breathing. All she could think about was getting out of there so she could help Tony and Paulie take care of Peter. That was if she could manage to keep herself from getting blown up... _again._

She started to wonder just how bad her wounds were. The doctor had not come in yet to tell her and Paulie and Tony did not give much detail on it. Just that it was bad. Than again, getting blown up four times in one day was not exactly that kind to the body.

"Ms. Soprano, I will be your nurse tonight. How are you feeling?" The R.N. asked coming into the private room.

"Great," Nicole lied. "When can I discharge myself?"

"I don't recommend that you do, Ms. Soprano."

Nicole sat up, and masked her pain the best that she could. "When can I? I don't want to be here longer than I have to. Now when the..." She stopped herself from swearing, "... when can I leave."

The R.N. sighed and took a quick look at Nicole's chart. "From what is written here, I would guess, in the morning. Though it is recommend that you stay for at least another 48 hours."

Finally. Maybe things were finally starting to go her way. She could only hope because one thing she _did _hate was having to stay confined to a hospital bed.

"Ms. Soprano, I strongly recommend that you follow your Doctor's orders, due to the extent of your injuries."

"Extent of my injuries? I don't really know what they are."

"You suffered a major concussion, caused by a fractured skull. Some broken ribs, and you had surgery for the internal bleeding."

She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had some pain but she didn't feel as bad as the list of injuries suggested.

"Umm.. okay. So what's the worse that could happen if I leave in the morning?"

The R.N. shook her head, "Hard to say, you could cause more damage to the skull fracture. You could reopen the internal bleeding."

"And?"

"You could die."

Nicole almost laughed out loud at that statement. If she hadn't died yet from everything she had gone through, chances were that leaving the hospital wouldn't kill her.

"Okay, well get me the papers and I will fill them out. I want out of here."

The R.N. shook her head again, "Ms. Soprano, I highly recommend that you don't."

"The papers."

A couple minutes later the R.N. walked in with the papers. "Once you have filled these out, I will send an L.P.N. to come and get them. Tomorrow morning you can leave."

There was no way Nicole was planning on waiting until tomorrow but she looked at the nurse and nodded. "Okay." Nicole filled out the paper work. She smirked and changed the date. Who will know right? Except the R.N.

Once she was done she pushed the nurse call button. The L.P.N came in and looked at the discharge papers. "Ms. Soprano, this says you're to be discharged right now. Are you sure? The R.N. said it would be in the morning."

Nicole sighed, "Yes, right now."

"All right. I will hand you, your clothes that were left for you and your personal belongings that you came in with." The L.P.N replied and went to the closet. Once she brought out Nicole's clothes she took out the I.V. and took off the EKG stickers.

Nicole waited until the L.P.N. had left and started to get dressed.

Paulie and Tony had been so kind to bring her, her clothes. She knew that she had to thank them.

Nicole was having some difficulty with her clothes because of the broken ribs she had sustained. Damn, why did her underwear have to be such a pain in the ass.

A half hour later she had managed to finish dressing. She sat on the bed out of breath and winced at the pain in her head and ribs. Maybe she should just stay in the hospital if she was having that much pain. No way, she was definitely out of there.

Nicole stood up from the bed and made her way to the door. She poked her head out into the hallway to make sure that, that nurse wasn't around anywhere.

When she didn't see her anywhere she started to make her way down the hall.

As she passed an opened door she heard a familiar voice. "I want out of here now! Get me my discharge papers!"

"Miss Stokes," the nurse said. "Dr. Stokes left implicit instructions that you are to stay in that bed."

Nicole stood by the door and listened to Lucy argue with the nurse. "Fucking bitch... I should take care of her right now." Nicole mumbled to herself.

"Listen, I'll have an orderly restrain you if I have to but you are staying in that bed." the nurse stated and made her way to the door.

Nicole had just slipped out of sight when she heard Lucy's reply. "Thanks for nothing, Nurse Ratchet."

Nicole smiled to herself, she had to hand it to Lucy, that was a good one.

The nurse ignored the remark and made her way back to the nurse's station.

Nicole peeked out from her hiding spot and watched the nurse round the counter and sit down. Once she was confident that the nurse wasn't paying attention, she slipped into Lucy's room.

Lucy turned her attention to the door when she heard the click. "Who's there?" she asked, as she saw no one in sight.

Just then Nicole stepped into view and stared at Lucy. She walked closer to the bed. "I was hoping you were dead." Nicole said.

"The feelings mutual." Lucy replied.

Nicole looked around and then smirked at Lucy. "You know this isn't over. I'll get my revenge on you and the rest of those fuckers."

Lucy narrowed her eyes and glared at Nicole. "Yeah, I believe you've tried on numerous occasions to accomplish that and it hasn't worked out so well, has it?" she replied smugly.

Nicole could feel the anger building up inside her and she moved right next to the bed. She placed her hand on Lucy's bandaged leg and looked her square in the eyes. "Listen, here you bitch! You may be alive right now, but you won't be for very much longer." With that, she applied pressure to Lucy's wounded leg.

Lucy let out a scream. "Aaaahhhhh! Let go of my fucking leg you fucking bitch!"

Nicole applied more pressure. "This is just a fraction of what you're in for. Remember that."

Lucy screamed again as the L.P.N., that had given Nicole her discharge papers, and two well built security guards entered the room. "What is going on in here?" the L.P.N. asked.

"Get her away from me." Lucy cried out in pain.

The two security guards pulled Nicole away from the bed.

"She's been discharged." The L.P.N. told the security guards. "Escort her out of the building and make sure she leaves." She then left the room to page the doctor to have a look at Lucy's leg.

As the security guards were taking Nicole out of the room she looked back at Lucy, still groaning in pain. "This isn't over. I _will _get you."

"Come on, let's go." the slighter of the two guards said.

The larger of the two guards stopped at the nurse's station to call a cab for Nicole and then proceeded to join his partner in escorting her down to the lobby.

Nicole was pissed. Lucy had to scream, didn't she? Of course she did. Anyone would if they were in excrutiating pain. Of course to Nicole it was extremely satisfying to hear. She was grinning as the elevator doors opened to reveal the lobby of the hospital.

The cab was waiting outside the hospital entrance as the guards escorted her outside. The smaller guard opened the door as the larger guard placed her into the back seat.

"I don't want to see you back here, do you understand?" he asked.

Nicole looked away from him and smirked and then turned to face him. "Yeah, I got it."

He shut the door and the cab pulled away from the curb.

"Where too ma'am?" The taxi driver asked.

"Palms Hotel." Nicole replied.

As the taxi made it's way through the traffic, Nicole looked out the window. She was thinking about how Tony and Paulie were going to react to her discharging herself out of the hospital. She has a suspicion that they were not going to be pleased with her. Part of her hated having them upset with her. They were the most important people in her life. However, she burried that, since she knew that she had to deal with the issue at hand. Tony and Paulie's honor.

She turned to the taxi driver when they reached a red light, "Where's the best place to get a pack of smokes and a coffee?"

The taxi driver turned and looked at her, "Just around the corner is a corner store, you can get your smokes there. The best coffee place that is open at this hour is a couple blocks from here."

"Okay take me to them." Nicole said. She needed a smoke, bad. They helped her think, and calm down. Not that she was not calm, already, just from being out of the hospital. The run in with Lucy however, did have some impact on her. She just had to plan on how to get back at Lucy, for all she had done.

Lucy in Nicole's mind was evil, and a pain in the ass. She had to be dealt with. There was no one on the face of the earth that has ever gotten away with that to the Soprano crew. Let alone to her loved ones.

The taxi driver pulled up to the corner store. She got out and told the taxi driver to wait for her. She ran in and got two packs of smokes and a bottle of water.

After that the taxi driver took her to the coffee shop and she ran in and grabbed a coffee for herself as well as Paulie and Tony.

Once the taxi pulled up to the Palms Hotel, Nicole got out than paid the taxi driver plus gave him a big tip.

She made her way into the hotel, than up to the room. She pulled out the door card and than walked into the room. To her surprise, Tony and Paulie weren't there.

"What the fuck? Where the hell are they?" she asked the empty room.

Sighing she set the tray of coffee down on the table and than took her shoes off. She debated calling Tony's cell to find out where they were. Her first guess was the bar.

"Fuck!" She didn't know what to do. Really she just wanted to take a shower and go to bed. But the fact that she didn't know where Tony and Paulie were pissed her off.

She put her shoes back on and made her way down to the bar.

Paulie and Tony were sitting down at the counter in the bar. Paulie took a drink of his whiskey. "What are we going to do once Nic's out of the hospital?"

"Go back to Jersey." Tony said putting out of his cigar.

Nicole over heard it as she sat down. "Jersey? T., you cant be serious." She said as she pulled out her smokes.

"Nic! What the fuck are you doing out of the hospital?" Paulie asked, worry apparent in his voice.

Paulie always worried about her. It was one thing that was as natural as breathing to him.

"Long story." Nicole answered.

Tony looked at her. She could tell that he was pissed off. "Nicole, what are you doing out of the hospital?" His voice was calm.

"I discharged myself." Nicole answered, as the bar tender walked over.

"What can I get you ma'am?" He asked Nicole.

Nicole looked him over and liked what she saw. He was definitely cute. She would never do anything about of course, but there was no harm in looking. "Whiskey and Coke." she answered, than turned to Paulie and Tony. "I couldn't stand it anymore. I'll be fine. However, I ran into Lucy while I was on my way out. Looks like she'll be in there a couple fucking days. I figured that we could hang around here until she is out and than get her and Peter."

"No." Tony answered.

Nicole was frustrated. She loved Tony but sometimes she got so sick and tired of him telling her when things were finished. "T. They are right here. Fuck, I'll do it myself."

Paulie looked at her. "Nic, sweetheart, no. You shouldn't even be out of the hospital. You got hurt bad."

"C'mon! You both want these pricks like I do. I'm just fine!"

Tony slammed his glass down on the bar top. "We are going back to Jersey and that's fucking final!"

Nicole hated when Tony got in these moods because usually there was no getting him out of them and changing his mind.

Paulie took another sip of his drink and looked at Nicole. "I think T.'s right, Nic. We should go home."

Nicole shook her head, getting more and more frustrated. She couldn't believe Paulie was agreeing with Tony. "Yeah, well if you want to go back to fucking Jersey, you go. But I'm finishing this."

Tony glared at her. "Don't fucking start with your bullshit Nicole. We're fucking going back to Jersey and that includes you. End of fucking discussion!" he said firmly and slammed his empty glass down on the bar.

Nicole sighed. Why the hell did this always happen to her! Every time she gets a break, something had to stand in her way. It just wasn't right. She took a deep breath and sighed.

"Okay, but as soon as I can I am going to come back here and finish her and Peter off. It's bullshit that we have to go back. I am supposed to be the worst wounded here and I feel fine." Although she didn't really believe that herself because the truth of the matter was, was that she felt like shit.

Tony threw some money on the bar and stood up. "I'm gonna go upstairs, pack and make our reservations. We'll be leaving as soon as possible." With that he walked out of the bar.

Nicole sighed and looked at Paulie. "Do you really wanna leave here with so much unfinished business?" she asked.

Paulie looked at her for a moment and then answered. "If it's the only way to ensure your safe and that you heal up properly, then yes I wanna go home."

Paulie was always concerning himself with Nicole's safety and well being. As sweet as that was sometimes, it could drive her up the fucking wall.

Nicole shook her head. "Yeah, well we better go. We need to pack." she said and starting making her way out of the bar.

Paulie watched her, he knew that she didn't want to leave without dealing with Lucy and Peter. He sighed, gulped down the last of his drink and followed behind her.

She caught up with Tony at the elevator. "T. Can I talk to you? Alone?" She hoped that this would go over somewhat good. Maybe she could get him to think that leaving here would be a bad idea. Because if they left than they would never know where Lucy and Peter were going to be.

"What about? It better fucking not be about staying here." Tony said as the elevator doors opened.

Nicole was fortunate enough that when they got on they were the only ones. She knew this was her one chance. It was now or never.

"T. It is. I just want to point out one thing. If we leave now, we'll never know where Lucy and Peter are going to be. If we stay, we know they are going to stick around. At least with her being in the fucking hospital."

Nicole could see that Tony was getting mad.

Tony hated it when Nicole questioned his decisions and she knew that. But she was the only one that really could and survive.

Tony was standing on the opposite side of the elevator. His eyes were narrowed and he was glaring at Nicole. She could see the redness creeping up his face and knew he was getting ready to explode.

"Why the fuck can't you ever let anything go?" he asked angrily. "Why do you gotta keep pushing and fucking pushing, huh, why?"

Nicole leaned against the mirrored wall of the elevator and looked at her cousin. "You just don't get it do you?"

"Apparently not. Why don't you fucking enlighten me and help me to fucking understand."

Nicole sighed. "It's just after all they've fucking done, I can't believe you're gonna fucking leave here and let them get away with it."

Tony stepped closer to Nicole and shook his head. "Let it go. We have to fucking move past this shit and get back to business. I can't spend the rest of my fucking life chasing after these assholes."

"Tony..." Nicole started to say and notice his eye twitching.

"NO! Fuck! Nic, just fucking stop with this bullshit!" he yelled. Then he turned around and saw her reflection in the mirrored wall. Suddenly he lifted his hand and smashed it into the mirror. "Fuck!"

Nicole didn't even flinch. She was used to his temper. She was just glad that it was her reflection he hit and not really her.

At that moment the elevator opened and revealed their floor. "Come on, T. I'll call the in house doctor and have him look at that. You may need stitches." she said, noticing the blood and the bits of glass that were embedded in his fist.

They made it to the room and Nicole called the doctor as Tony put his hand into an ice bucket. "Shit!" he hissed, as the cold water stung his wounds.

Nicole walked over to him and shook her head. "That wasn't very smart T. You should learn to control your temper better."

"Around you, I think that's damn near fucking impossible."

Nicole smirked, when she heard the door to the room open. She turned and saw Paulie enter the room. Tony poured himself a scotch and downed the amber liquid in one gulp.

Paulie made his way over to the bar and looked at Tony and Nicole. "What happened in the elevator?" Paulie asked.

"Long story." Nicole replied and sighed.

Paulie shook his head. "Why is it wherever you two go, something ends up destroyed?"

**TBC...**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Jim turned the car down the street that lead to their house. The ride from the chapel had been, for the most part, silent. He glanced over at Catherine and smiled. She was sitting in the passenger's seat admiring her wedding ring.

Catherine sighed and looked over at Jim. "I've been thinking."

Jim felt a lump get caught in his throat. "About what?" he croaked out.

Catherine smirked at her husband. "Our honeymoon."

"What about it?" he asked curiously.

"Well, an Alaskan cruise does sound nice but I think I'd like to go somewhere else." she replied, not sure how Jim would take it. Seeing as the cruise was his idea to begin with.

Jim pulled the car into their driveway and shut off the engine. He removed his seatbelt and turned slightly to face Catherine. "Honey, wherever you want to go is fine with me. Just as long as I'm with you." he said and smiled at her.

"You'll always be with me, Jim. No matter where I am."

Jim leaned across the seat and pulled Catherine in for a lingering kiss. When they finally broke apart, Jim pulled back and looked into her eyes. "So, if not a cruise, where would you like to go?"

Catherine smiled. "The Virgin Islands."

Jim looked at her confused. "The Virgin Islands?"

"St. Thomas to be more exact. A friend of mine came back from there not to long ago and she said it was absolutely breathtaking. A perfect spot for a honeymoon." Catherine smirked.

Jim shook his head. "Why did you agree to the cruise if you wanted to go to St. Thomas?"

"Well, the cruise was your idea and I didn't want..."

"Cath, no. You never have to do anything or go anywhere you don't want to. Especially to please me."

Catherine looked down at her hands. "I just thought..."

Jim placed his finger under her chin and turned her face up to look at him. "Sweetheart, St. Thomas sounds perfect. Hell, I'd honeymoon in a cardboard box, as long as I'm with you." he said and smiled.

Catherine raised her eyebrows. "Jim, as much as I love you, I still have standards."

Jim chuckled as they both exited the car and made their way toward the front door of the house.

Jim pulled out his keys and unlocked the door. He and Catherine made their way into the living room where they found Nick and Andrea cuddling on the couch.

"Bad girl!" Jim scolded. "I thought I told you no boys while your babysitting."

Andrea looked up at her older brother and smirked. "Oh, believe me Jimmy, Nick's no boy."

Jim furrowed his brow. "Okay, there are just some things a brother should never know."

Nick and Andrea chuckled. "So, where have you two been?" Nick asked.

Jim and Catherine looked at each other and then back to the couple on the couch. "We got married." Catherine said simply.

Andrea and Nick jumped up from the couch. "You what!" they both asked.

"We got married." Jim repeated.

"But I thought you wanted a big wedding?" Andrea said to Catherine.

"I did. But then I thought about everything's that happened, with Sam dying and everything, we figured this was the easiest way."

"I can't believe you got married without us." Andrea said.

Jim glared at his sister. "Uh, Andy, if I'm not mistaken, you and Nick did the same thing. I wouldn't be too pissed off if I were you."

Andrea blushed slightly and glanced at Nick. "You're right, Jimmy, I'm sorry. Congrats."

"Yeah, congratulations you guys." Nick added.

"Thanks." Jim and Catherine replied.

"So, how's the little guy?" Jim asked.

"Down for the count." Andrea replied. "He's been fed and changed so he should be good for the night."

"Thanks for babysitting." Catherine said as Andrea's beeper went off.

Andrea pulled the beeper off her belt and looked at the number. "It's the hospital. Excuse me." she said and left the room to use the phone in the kitchen.

"Hope it's nothing serious." Catherine mused.

A few minutes later Andrea returned. "I have to head over to the hospital. It seems Lucy's giving the night shift a lot of trouble."

Nick sighed and shook his head. "I'll go with you. She can be a real handful when she gets into one of her moods."

"Okay. We'll see you two later." Andrea said as she and Nick made their way out the door.

* * *

As Nick and Andrea were making their way down the hall of the hospital, they could clearly hear Lucy yelling at a nurse. "I don't want a sleeping pill, I want to get the hell out of here!"

Andrea got to the door and saw the nurse trying to get Lucy back into the bed. "Miss Stokes I have strict instructions that you have to stay in that bed." the nurse said firmly.

"I don't care..."

"Lucy!" Nick barked from the doorway, where he stood beside his wife. "Listen to the nurse and get back in that bed."

Lucy turned her head toward the door and looked at her brother and sister-in-law. "Nick, I hate hospitals..."

Nick walked toward the bed and spoke more calmly. "I know, Luce. But you have to stay off that leg for a few more days."

The nurse looked at Nick and then headed toward the door. "I'm sorry, Dr. Stokes. I tried..."

"It's okay, Maggie. We'll handle things from here." Andrea said and joined Nick at Lucy's bedside.

"It'd be a lot better if that bitch hadn't of busted my stitches." Lucy sulked.

"Who?" Nick asked.

"That bitch Nicole. She came in here earlier. Grabbed my leg and told me that she was gonna get her revenge on us. Then she squeezed my leg and ended up busting the stitches."

"Where is she now?" Andrea asked.

"The security guards took her out of here. The L.P.N said she had been discharged."

Nick shook his head. "This shit's never gonna end."

"Yes it will. Because when I get out of here, I'm taking her and Tony both down." Lucy stated.

"Like hell you are!"

"Like hell I'm not! After all they've done, they're not getting away with it!"

"This is exactly why this shit's gonna keep on going. Because you, Peter and those idiots won't fucking quit!"

"Nick..."

"NO! You're gonna drop this. I want this shit done and over with for good. Let it go!"

Lucy sighed and glared at her older brother. Andrea glanced from Nick to Lucy. "Has Peter been here?" she asked.

"A while ago. But the nurse kicked him out."

Andrea looked at Nick with a worried expression on her face. He knew what she was thinking and looked back at Lucy. "Listen, Lucy, we're gonna head out and check on something. I want you to stay put and stop giving the nurses a hard time. You got me." Lucy narrowed her eyes and stared at Nick. "Do you got me!"

"Yeah, I got you." Lucy replied and then mumbled. "Geeze, you're worse than Nurse Ratchet."

"What was that?"

"Nothing. Just go." Lucy said and turned away from them.

Nick looked at his sister, sighed and then followed Andrea out the door.

They made their way down the hall and stopped in front of the elevators. "Nick, if Peter was kicked out of here, there's no telling where he could be."

"Don't jump to any conclusions. Let's just go home and if he's not there, then we'll figure out what to do, okay?"

Andrea nodded. "Okay."

* * *

A half hour later, they were pulling into their driveway. Nick parked and shut the engine off. "See, there's his truck."

Andrea let out a sigh of relief. "Thank God. I didn't wanna be up all night worried about him."

They entered the house and Andrea walked down the hall to the spare room. She opened the door and poked her head into the room. She saw Peter snuggled up under the covers, snoring.

She smiled softly, shut the door and made her way to her and Nick's room. She walked into the bedroom as Nick was sliding under the covers of their bed.

"He's in the spare room. Sound asleep."

"There you go. At least this time he didn't run off and do anything stupid." Nick replied.

Andrea got undressed and slipped under the covers beside her husband. "For now anyway." she replied and turned off the bedside lamp.

* * *

The doctor had just finished stitching up Tony's hand. "Mr. Soprano, you should be more careful. I've never made this many visits to one room before."

Tony looked over at Nicole as the doctor put a bandage around his stitched hand. "Yeah, well, I'm prone to accidents in certain company."

The doctor just shook his head as he finished up and left the room. Tony poured another drink and sat down on the bed.

"Tony..." Nicole started.

"Don't fucking say it, Nikki. Just don't fucking say it." Tony interrupted her and then gulped his drink down.

"What's going on?" Paulie asked.

"Nic doesn't want to leave. Big fucking surprise, right?" Tony said sarcastically.

"I just think we should finish things before we leave." Nicole replied.

"And I said we're fucking done. We can't waste anymore fucking time chasing after those two fuckers. We have business to deal with."

Paulie looked at Tony and than over to Nicole. "Sweetheart, Tony's right. We can't stay in Vegas any longer."

Nicole couldn't believe what she was hearing. After everything that Peter and Lucy had done, Paulie and Tony just wanted to give up and go home.

"I can't fucking believe it!" Nicole yelled. She was getting seriously pissed now. "That fucking bitch blew up a building and left me for dead and you want me to walk away? Go home and continue with business as usual like nothing ever fucking happened?"

Tony stood up, walked over to Nicole and loomed over her. "That's exactly what you're gonna fucking do." he replied.

Tony looked absolutely enormous standing over and Nicole knew she was in a losing situation. This time she had no choice but to give in to Tony and hope that another time she would have the opportunity to take care of Peter and Lucy for good.

**TBC...**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6 **

It had been three weeks since Nicole, Paulie and Tony had returned from Las Vegas and everything had relatively gone back to normal.

Nicole and Paulie were happy. Well as happy as Nicole could be without having gotten her revenge on the crew in Vegas. But since she and Paulie were living together, she hadn't really thought of Vegas much in the last few weeks. Not that it didn't occasionally pop into her head but it wasn't as often as it usually was.

Nicole was relaxing on the couch when Paulie walked in. She looked up and smiled when she saw him. "Hi."

Paulie smiled back and came and sat down beside her. "Hey, sweetheart."

Nicole looked at Paulie and noticed something in his eyes. It wasn't exactly bad but it seemed that he felt uneasy about something. "Everything okay?" she asked.

Paulie had one hand in the pocket of his jacket and he was looking down at the floor. "I need to talk to you." he replied nervously.

Nicole heard the nervousness in his voice and she suddenly became very nervous herself. "Okay."

Paulie cleared his throat, pulled his hand from his pocket and took Nicole's hands into his own. "I've been thinking about this for a long time now. Even before I thought I had lost you in Vegas. But after that I knew this was something I had to do." Paulie reached into his pocket and pulled the velvet box out. "Nicole, I love you more than anything and can't imagine my life without you in it." Paulie stopped and looked at Nicole who had tears streaming down her face. "So, I'm asking..." He opened the box and pulled the platinum sapphire and diamond engagement ring out of its setting. "Will you marry me?"

Nicole looked down at the ring in Paulie's hand, stunned. She had been so busy staring at the ring she hadn't even noticed that Paulie had been talking. She tore her gaze from the ring and looked at Paulie. "Hmmm?" she asked, dazed.

Paulie smiled and chuckled a little bit. He moved and got down on one knee in front of her. "Nicole, please. Marry me."

Nicole looked into Paulie's eyes and smiled. "I would love to marry you, Paulie." she answered.

Paulie took her hand and placed the ring on her finger. Then he pulled her to him and kissed her more passionately than he had ever kissed anyone in his entire life.

**/Las Vegas, Nevada/**

Andrea and Nick had just arrived back home after taking Jim and Catherine to the airport for their honeymoon. They walked into the house and Nick set Alex's car seat down when he saw Lucy pacing the floor in the kitchen. "Lucy, what's wrong?"

Lucy turned and looked at them. "Peter's gone." She said and handed Nick a note. "He took my fucking truck and left this."

Nick and Andrea read the note: 'Lucy, please, please don't follow. I'm going to Newark to take care of some business. Don't get mad or worry honey. I'll call once I know how things are going. You'll hear from me in two days. I do love you. Peter.'

"How... what is he thinking?" Andrea asked looking from her husband to her sister-in-law.

Lucy was pissed. "I don't fucking know. But... I'm going after him."

Nick placed the note on the table and looked at his little sister. "No, Luce, let's just wait to hear from him. Then we can find out what's going on."

Lucy's mouth dropped open. "Fuck that Nick. How do you expect me to just fucking sit around while he goes to Newark? What if we don't fucking hear from him? Then what?" Sure Lucy was still mad at Peter, but she did love him. But now she was worried and even more mad at him.

Andrea sighed, "I think Nick's right. Let's just take it easy and wait to hear from him. If we don't you two can go after him and find out what's going on."

**/Highway to Newark/**

Peter was driving Lucy's truck to Newark. Granted he was doing 80 to 90 MPH between 130 to 145 KMH. The roads were in good condition so he didn't worry. The only thing Peter was concerned about was how Lucy was taking this. He knew that if he had tried to sit down with her and explain everything that she would go off the deep end and flip out. So that's why he just left the note and headed out.

**/Newark, New Jersey/**

Tony, Sil and Christopher were sitting in the back of the Bing discussing the business of the day. They all looked up when they heard the door open. "Morning." Tony said looking at the two. "We got a problem."

Nicole sighed and sat down across from Tony. "What is it?" She asked. Part of her was hoping that the group from Vegas was back and they finally could finish it.

"Vince Malone. He's well over due on our money and the last warning didn't do any good."

Nicole smiled, some people would say she was twisted, but she liked her job. She loved doing these kind of favors for Tony. She was good at it. Sure when the Vegas crew came, she really started to doubt herself. "What do you want done?" Nicole asked.

"Want you to deal with him. If he doesn't pay you, do what you want with the cocksucker." Tony answered. She was his right hand person. She proven herself time and time again. "Take Christopher with you."

"I got a shipment to heist." Christopher said. "I can't."

Tony shrugged. "Okay. Nic, you're on your own."

"No problem. He's dealt with." She replied and left.

**/Las Vegas, Nevada/**

Lucy wandered through the house thinking of all the possible things Peter would be up to. Along with that she was thinking of all the things she so desperately wanted to say to him.

He knew how badly she wanted to deal with the Soprano crew. And yet he went himself. It infuriated her.

Nick watched her pace for a minute then walked up to her. "Luce, you can't let it get to you like this. It might be nothing."

"Nicky, he knows how bad I wanted to deal with this and go back there. Yet he just up and leaves without me!"

Andrea made her way into the room. "Will you two keep your voices down before you wake the baby." she said. She and Nick were watching Alex while Jim and Catherine were on their honeymoon in St. Thomas. Lindsey was going to stay with them as well but then decided to stay with Lily.

Nick looked from Lucy over to his glaring wife. "Sorry honey." he replied.

Lucy stopped pacing. She managed to lower her voice this time when she spoke. "I don't think I can handle waiting around for two days."

"You're going to have to." Nick answered. "Just do it."

Lucy rolled her eyes and walked away.

**/Newark, New Jersey/**

Vince Malone got into his car and made his way out of the driveway. He slammed on the brakes when he saw a black half ton dooly GMC pick-up stop in front of him.

He looked up at the driver who was lighting a cigarette. "Fuck!" Vince cursed, it was Nicole.

Nicole looked at him and smiled as she drove away.

Later in the city, Vince pulled up to a red light. In the other lane the same black half ton dooly pulled up. He looked up and saw Nicole again. She raised her eyebrows and slightly smiled.

"Fucking bitch!" Vince cursed and decided his best bet was to blow the red light. Horns honked and two cars collided in the intersection.

Nicole laughed. She loved playing mind games.

* * *

Tony was sitting at his desk in the back room of the Bing when his phone rang. "Yeah?" he answered.

"T., it's me." Nicole's voice said on the other end.

"Did you take care of our problem?" Tony asked as he lit a cigar.

"Not yet. But I got him spooked."

"Nikki, stop playing your fucking mind games with him and take care of it."

Nicole laughed. "Aww, come on Tony, let me have some fun with him."

"Nicole, either get the fucking money or take care of him. Don't chase him all over town.

* * *

"Got it, T." Nicole replied and hung up. She laughed and continued on her way. She found Vince's car parked at a small corner store. She blocked his car in and got out. She put her Beretta in the back of her belt and covered it up with her leather jacket. She leaned on the front of her truck and lit a smoke.

Vince came out of the store with his head down and walked to his car. He was about open the door when Nicole spoke, "So Vince, not going to say 'hi'?" She asked, still leaning on her truck. She took a puff and threw the butt on the ground and stepped on it.

"Look, tell Tony I'll have his money soon." Vince replied, with a slight tremor in his voice.

"Not gonna cut it, Vince." Nicole said as she walked over to his car. "You're way passed your deadline."

"I just don't have the money right now."

Nicole walked up beside Vince and looked into the bag he was carrying. "You seem to have anough money for a bottle of Jack and carton of smokes."

Vince stared at Nicole. He didn't know what to say.

Nicole shook her head. "C'mon, let's take a drive."

"No. I-I-I'll get Tony his money. I promise."

Nicole pulled her gun out fast and cocked him on the back of the head. He was out. She pulled him over to the back passenger door and pushed him in. Once he was in she pulled out some rope and tied his feet and hands together.

Once Vince was secured, she jumped into her truck and sped out of the parking lot.

**/Highway To Newark/**

Peter was still on the road and traveling at a pretty good speed. One thing he did find though was that it was hard to concentrate on his driving when his mind was totally preoccupied with thoughts of Lucy.

He knew in his heart that she was going to be pissed at him and he was starting to wonder if this had been a good idea. He just hoped in the long run that everything would work itself out.

**/Newark, New Jersey/**

Nicole parked her truck at the back of Satriale's and jumped out. She pulled Vince from the back and drug him into the back room.

She placed him on a chair and stood in front of him. "You know, Vince, you've made Tony very mad." Nicole said.

"Nicole, I-I-I swear I'll have his money tomorrow."

Nicole shook her head. "Not good, Vince. You were supposed to have the money last week. We've given you a week's grace period. Now, I think that's pretty generous."

"Please..." Vince begged as Nicole walked over to the side of the room. "I'm sorry. I never..."

His words were cut off as Nicole wrapped a chain around his neck and started to choke him. "You never should have borrowed the money, Vince, if you couldn't pay it back."

She pulled the chain harder and Vince's face started to turn purple. He tried to thrash but it was impossible because his arms and legs were still bound.

After another minute Nicole let go of the chain and Vince tipped off the chair and onto his side on the floor. Nicole checked for a pulse, found none and then double checked. If past mistakes have taught her anything it was to always double check for a pulse.

Vince was dead.

Nicole pulled out her cell phone, dialed the number and put the phone to her ear. She spoke when she heard his voice. "Tony, it's done."

"Good. I take it he didn't have the money."

"No. And we both knew he wouldn't."

"At least he's not a problem anymore. Thanks, Nikki. I'll see you later."

"Later, Ton." Nicole replied and hung up. the she dialed another number. "Paulie, I need your help."

**TBC...**


End file.
